The Orioles' historic defensive season, in which they committed a Major League record-low 54 errors, culminated with an impressive showing in Tuesday night's unveiling of the 2013 Rawlings Gold Glove Award winners.

Third baseman Manny Machado, shortstop J.J. Hardy and center fielder Adam Jones each took home baseball's most coveted defensive hardware, as the Orioles became the first club since the 2003-04 Cardinals with at least three Gold Glove Award winners in consecutive seasons.

This year's winners -- announced in a one-hour special on ESPN2 -- featured a solid mix of the next generation of defenders and the old guard.

The eight first-time winners included a pair of young stars in Machado and Atlanta shortstop Andrelton Simmons, who had incredible seasons both aesthetically and sabermetrically. Meanwhile, Rockies third baseman Nolan Arenado became just the 10th rookie in history to take home the award and the first since Ichiro Suzuki did so in 2001.

As for the veterans, Cardinals catcher Yadier Molina took home his sixth Gold Glove, moving into a tie for fourth place in history among backstops. Reds second baseman Brandon Phillips and Red Sox right fielder Shane Victorino both notched their fourth.

The Kansas City Royals were the only other club with three winners on Tuesday night, as catcher Salvador Perez, first baseman Eric Hosmer and left fielder Alex Gordon each won an award. Hosmer and Perez were first-time winners, while Gordon notched his third straight.

"It's a tremendous honor to be in such an elite league with the best competitors all over the planet," Hosmer said. "Really, to win any type of award, especially the Rawlings Gold Glove Award, is a tremendous honor. I'm very excited about the award, and I couldn't thank all my teammates enough and the infield around me for --everyone -- doing their part and me being able to get this award."

Until the 2013 season, the Gold Glove Awards had been decided by voting among Major League managers and coaches. This year, however, the Society for American Baseball Research (SABR) collaborated with Rawlings to formally incorporate sabermetrics as a component.